Bottoms Up
by anonymousidentity
Summary: How drinks can affect lives. Short parodies of modern-day drinks and how they affect our favorite characters.
1. Open Up Some Happiness

Disclaimer: I do not own the to-be-mentioned beverage, and I repeat, neither do I own _Shakugan no Shana_. Also, I borrowed quite a lot of lines from the original version. I hope it's not NOT allowed.

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_Come on and lift me up, it's a brand new day,_

_Open up a lil' happiness today,_

_So I can be someone new..._

Yuji poured himself another glass of Coke as he and Shana continued to gaze at the television screen. He posed himself a question: _What would opening my happiness be? _Slowly, he closed his eyes, and called to mind the events of last Christmas...

---

_It was snowing tonight; walking down the street were two winter-clothing-clad people; one in a brown leather jacket, another in a pink wool sweater and a bonnet hat. Contentedly basking in each other's warmth, arms intertwined, Yuji felt happier than he had felt in a very long time._

"_Where to now?"_

"_You kept me waiting a long time; I'm hungry. Let's stop by the bakery for something to eat."_

"_Ahh. Hai, hai. Melon bread again. Don't you ever eat any other kind of snack, Shana?"_

_Pausing for a moment, Shana stopped to think before responding, "Not really, no. What's the point in eating another kind of snack, anyway, when there's the perfect one; melon bread! The--"_

"_I know, I know, the soft inner taste of sweetbread and the crispy outer layer of cookiedough. But, why don't we eat something else for a change this time?" asked Yuji, nearing the street corner._

"_..."_

"_Come on! Just this once. Please?"_

"_...Fine. Just this once."_

_Finding a pretzel stand two blocks away, Yuji bought two pretzels and two hot chocolates. Yuji ate slowly, watching the amusing antics of Shana beginning the rituals of trying new food; stare, smell, taste. _

_After a few bites, she remarked, "Not bad. Not bad at all. Still. We're getting melon bread next time."_

"_Ah, so there IS gonna be a next time." Drawing closer to Shana, he says in a lower tone, "Are we gonna be eating together often in the future, Shana? Like, a date or something?"_

"_Urusai, urusai, urusai! Baka-Yuji..." Shana said, as she stalked off. _

_---_

Your heart deserves your trust,

a choice made for all of us,  
The sun will come back tomorrow,  
There's a message in a bottle...

Munching on a loaf of melon bread, Shana stole a glance at Yuji. He had his eyes closed. What could he be doing? Turning back towards the television, Shana posed herself a question: _What would opening my happiness be? _She found herself closing her eyes and recalling a familliar memory...

---

_Sitting back to back on a rooftop were two figures, one looking worn-out, another glowing bright-blue. They talked with hushed voices, as though a solemn event was taking place._

"_You won."_

"_In the end, I was able to stand because I heard your voice."_

"_I'm glad I was able to be of assistance..."_

"_..."_

"_He sucked away a lot of my power of existence... I guess I'll be disappearing... Maybe I pushed myself too much, when I'm just a torch--"_

"_Don't say, 'just'... you're Sakai Yuji."_

"_But... Gomen. Yesterday, you lost because of me, right? That's why you tried to kill me."_

"_It's not like that."_

_Shana reached for Yuji's hand, and found it, though she could have sworn it felt more faint and intangible than a normal hand would. "It's not like that," she repeated._

"_Really. Then, that's a relief. I guess there was some meaning for my being here... Sayonara, Shana."_

_Just as Yuji was fading away into nonexistence, the clock struck twelve, and rematerializing once more was Yuji. Shana couldn't help but breathe a great sigh of relief at the fact that Yuji was still there, and would still be there, now that the Reiji Maigo theory was proven to be fact rather than just theory._

---

Opening her eyes, she finds that she actually HAS reached out for his hand, and now finds her hand resting comfortably on top of Yuji's.

---

Opening his eyes, he finds that he actually HAS drawn nearer to Shana, and now they are but centimetres apart, with Shana's hand resting lightly on top of his. He sees Shana slowly opening her eyes.

"Did you open your happiness too?"

"..."

They resumed watching the commercial, side by side, hand in hand, evidently comfortable in their position, as a man dressed up as a reporter sang standing sideways on a building. Gradually, Shana's head came to rest on Yuji's shoulders, although neither seemed to mind.

_Come on and lift me up to a better way,_

_Open up a smile on another face,_

_So I can feel something new..._

Fin.


	2. So Nothing Holds You Back

I do not own _Shakugan no Shana, _or the to-be-mentioned sports drink.

-Me

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"Hurry up, Ane-san and the rest are counting on us! We've got to get this monster of a sword to Hirai-san, somehow."

A heavily sweating duo stood a few feet away from a massive sword, who for the past thirty minutes have been taking turns at attempting to carry it. Now, time-pressured due to the presence of the Seirei Den, they redoubled their efforts at carrying the Blutsauger.

"I know, I know. We need to find a way. If only we had a crane nearby that we could hijack..."

"Nah, that's no use. I don't think even the crane'd be able to carry this stupid sword."

"Yeah, you're right. Hey, I have an idea!" exclaimed the squint-eyed Tanaka.

"Yeah? Let's hear it."

"Remember that commercial for that sports drink?"

"Which one?"

"You know, the one where there were these athletes. One of them was swimming in liquid concrete, I think. Then the other one was running with an open parachute strapped to him."

"Oh! You mean Gatorade. You know what? That just might work."

_Fifteen minutes later..._

"Ane-san... left this behind..." said a panting Tanaka, as he leaned on the wheelbarrow which held the Blutsauger

"You're going to fight... Denizens, right?" Keisaku managed to gasp out between explosive breaths.

"Please, take this. Use it when you fight the denizens." Keisaku hands Shana a bottle of blue liquid, which Shana unthinkingly accepts, her attention too drawn towards the battlesword before her.

_Just after the battle with the robots..._

"I must get to Yuji..." says Shana, taking a swig of the sports drink which seemed to revive her at least somewhat.

"This is a great drink. It would go well with melon bread."

Fin.


	3. Gives You Wings

Disclaimer: I don't own the series or the to-be-mentioned beverage.

Iden: Decided to add a chapter two to this thing. Yeah.

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Exiting the bakery, Shana counted the change that was given to her by the cashier. Promptly, she took out a melon bread and was about to start eating when she was approached by a man who was dressed in something like what a racecar driver wears. She had no time to wonder about this, however, as the young man thrust a soda-can of sorts at her hurriedly.

"Young lady, please try our new product! It's non-alcoholic, and packed full of carbohydrates to keep you energized!"

Without so much as a backward glance, the man hurried off, presumably to seek another young girl to thrust another can of beverage at.

Curious, Shana read the label on the can. It read:

_Red Bull_

_Non-alcoholic; great for all ages!_

Shana then recalled a commercial between two shows on TV.

"Red Bull gives you wings, huh?"

_**********************************************************************************_

"Yuji!"

"Shana!"

The now-crimson-haired girl couldn't help but feel a surge of relief as soon as she was able to grab a hold of Yuji's hand, as if feeling the energy coming from Yuji himself. She quickly stuck _Nietono no Shana _in the building face, breaking their fall. Though, no sooner than she had done this, Margery fired violet bolts of energy at her, giving them an even bigger adversary than just the pavement below.

'_What a predicament...' thought Alastor._

"Quick! Yuji! Lower your protection when I jump, otherwise the flame won't work!"

"Wait. If you dissolve it now, we'll be an easy target," said the Flame of Heaven.

"You can fall down, or get shot down. It's your choice now," said Margery, the venom tangible in her voice.

Suddenly, a voice called out from above.

"Ah. Interesting indeed. Although I'd love to see how this turns out, I'm afraid I must get going," said Rammie, turning to leave as he spoke.

"Wait! You're not getting away from me yet!" cried Marcosius, as he and Margery shapeshifted into the were-wolf form once more, giving the Corpse Retriever chase. This was all the distraction Shana needed.

"Lower the barrier, now!"

Just as she spoke, the sword tore loose of the building, and they plummeted toward the ruins below. Throwing all honour and manliness aside, Yuji screamed as the ground neared.

'_I can do this. I can do anything!' thought Shana._

Recalling the energy drink she drank a few hours ago, Shana came up with an idea. '_Red Bull gives you wings...'_

Now knowing what she had to do, coupled with the confidence of having Yuji with her, this was all she needed.

_**Fwooooosh!**_

Two large crimson wings of flame sprouted from Shana's back.

Fin.


End file.
